The drive to the cemetery where Craig was to be buried, seemed to take forever, with Ryan seated stiffly in the backseat and Angela seated beside him, rubbing his shoulders in support and sympathy. He still couldn’t believe it, although he supposed that there really wasn’t any reason to be so surprised. After all, the doctors had told him that this was what would most likely happen in the end and that Craig was highly unlikely to come out of the coma. Ryan had held out so much hope though, but still, Craig had died. The twins now had no one but him, and would never know either of their biological parents. Even though he had had this whole while, and even the two weeks since Craig had died, to come to terms with the loss, it felt so unbelievable and unfair. “I hope those bastards rot in jail for the rest of their miserable lives.” He ground out through clenched teeth, gripping Angela’s hand hard when she took his hand to comfort him so that she winced. “I’m sorry.” He apologized imme

“So, I was going to tell you that I quit my job, but I haven’t found the time to do that yet,” Sandra told Becca as they walked down the aisle at the supermarket, putting stuff in their respective trolleys. Alex was strapped to her chest with a baby carrier, and he was sleeping peacefully with his small mouth open, despite the chaos and noise that was in the supermarket. Christmas was near, and so the place was packed full, as everyone was in a rush to buy things in preparation for the festive period. “Excuse me?” Becca said, totally surprised, as that was the last thing that she had been expecting Sandra to say. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but anyway, you know I’ve not been so fine recently.” “Wow. That’s no excuse, but okay. Have you told Dan?” “No. I’ll tell him today.” “Why did you quit though? I thought you loved the job. I know for a fact that I enjoy having you there a lot. I’m going to miss you so much. Please tell me that you’re joking, Sandra.” Becca begged, but

Toby, Becca’s younger brother arrived at her house in the evening the following day. He took one look at her and whopped in equal parts of surprise and excitement, staring at her large, round stomach with wide eyes as he got out of the taxi to meet her where she was standing in her driveway to welcome him.“What? You’ve never seen a pregnant woman before? Are you not going to grab your luggage, or do you want the taxi driver to have it as a Christmas present?” Becca asked him playfully, although she couldn’t exactly say that she blamed him for his surprise. After all, she saw herself in the mirror every day and was only getting used to the big, tired-looking woman that she saw every day. It was all going to be so worth it in the end, though.“Ah, right!” Toby said and went back to pick up his small luggage, before coming back to hug her gently, taking care to avoid her stomach. Becca rolled her eyes and hugged him back tightly. She had missed him so much, and the last time that she ha

The snow began to fall on Christmas eve, lightly at first, and then more seriously later on, just as Sandra had predicted. By the time it was morning, everywhere was white with snow, and so beautiful that it was breathtaking. Becca got up late, feeling particularly sluggish this morning, despite the fact that she had gone to bed quite early. Her lower back was hurting more than usual, and she kept reaching behind her unconsciously to rub at it.By the time she took her bath and padded to the living room, Toby had already prepared breakfast and was sipping a cup of hot coffee while talking to what she assumed will be one of his friends on the phone. He hung up some minutes after she came to sit down opposite him.“Good morning, big sis. You look like crap.” He told her matter of factly.“Gee, thanks Toby for your kind words. You sure know how to raise a woman’s self-esteem a million notches. However, you're right, but I guess I not only look like crap. I feel like it too.”“Well, I jus

Christmas Day in Ryan’s residence was spent in a gloomy mood and atmosphere. Everyone in the house, not just Ryan, moved about as solemnly and somberly as though someone had died again, or was about to. Even the twins seemed to know that something was wrong, and did not babble as much as they usually did, neither did they offer their happy smiles as Ryan came into their nursery to see them that morning. For the past two and a half weeks since Craig’s burial, Ryan had been living in perpetual fear that the twin's grandparents would act on their threat to fight for custody of them. However, a few days ago, he had begun to relax, and think that all was well, especially when Craig’s mother had texted him, asking how the twins were and if he could send pictures of them in the clothes that she sent them for Christmas. Ryan had happily obliged and had begun to think that everything was now okay between them, and she had accepted that the twins should live with him, only for him to be served